Sergio Perez signs new two-year Red Bull F1 contract | GRR
Monaco Grand Prix winner Sergio Perez will continue to race for the Red Bull F1 team for at least two more seasons following the end of the current championship.
Perez joined the team at the start of the 2021 season to replace the outgoing Alex Albon. His initial contract with Red Bull followed an impressive 2020 season, in which he secured multiple podium finishes, including his first ever F1 victory at the Sakhir Grand Prix in Bahrain, on his way to finishing fourth in the drivers’ standings, three places ahead of the Thai driver he would replace.
The Mexican’s 2021 F1 season was mixed. He added his second Formula 1 victory at Baku, but failed to finish higher than third for the rest of the season and regularly missed out on top five finishes. He ended 2021 in fourth in the championship, 231 points behind team-mate Max Verstappen.
But he has begun the 2022 season far stronger, finishing second three times and adding his third F1 victory at the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend. He currently sits third in the standings behind his team-mate and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Rumours had been swirling that Perez had signed a new contract, following a comment on his way to the podium to Christian Horner, Red Bull Team Principal, that he shouldn’t have signed so quickly. Today (31st May) it was confirmed that Perez had signed his new contract during the Monaco weekend.
“Checo”’s third F1 victory last weekend made him the most successful Mexican F1 driver of all time, surpassing the legendary Pedro Rodriguez’s total of two wins.
Speaking about his new contract Perez said: “For me, this has been an incredible week, winning the Monaco Grand Prix is a dream for any driver and then to follow that with announcing I will continue with the team until 2024 just makes me extremely happy. I am so proud to be a member of this team and I feel completely at home here now.
“We are working very well together and my relationship with Max, on and off the track, is definitely helping drive us forward even more. We have built tremendous momentum as a team and this season is showing that, I am excited to see where that can take us all in the future.”
Commenting on today’s announcement, Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal and CEO Christian Horner said: “Since joining Oracle Red Bull Racing, Checo has done a fantastic job. Time and again he has proved himself to not only be a magnificent team player but, as his level of comfort has grown, he has become a real force to be reckoned with at the sharp end of the grid.
“This year he has taken another step and the gap to World Champion Max has closed significantly, evidenced by his superb pole position in Jeddah earlier this year and by his wonderful win in Monaco just last weekend. For us, holding onto his pace, race craft and experience was a no-brainer and we are delighted that Checo will continue to race for the team until 2024. In partnership with Max we believe we have a driver pairing that can bring us the biggest prizes in F1.”
Are you a fan of Formula 1? We have five F1 teams coming to the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed presented by MasterCard. There are still tickets available, so don’t miss out on a chance to experience classic and modern F1 cars in the metal.
Images courtesy of Motorsport Images.